By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube. Many people have personal websites, such as blogs, that are not associated with a larger group or organization. Be sure they have a Creative Commons license allowing them to be duplicated and shared, and meet the CRAAP test criteria, especially in the authority section. Primary sources are often considered the most credible in terms of providing evidence for your argument, as they give you direct evidence of what you are researching. Has the author of the article published other articles? If credentials are not listed, that does not mean that the author has no expertise, but it does make it hard for you to evaluate whether he/she/they do and that means the sources may not be appropriate for college level research. Evaluating sources In order to persuade your reader of your position, your writing needs to incorporate evidence and sources. The Purdue OWL is clearly the only safe choice for student writers. For example, as recently as the 1960s, most scholarly linguists believed African American Vernacular English to be a deficient, broken form of standard American English reflective of African Americans lack of cognitive abilities. Citation databases will also tell you the number of times this source has been cited by other academics, giving you further insight into its credibility. This article was co-authored by Alexander Ruiz, M.Ed.. Alexander Ruiz is an Educational Consultant and the Educational Director of Link Educational Institute, a tutoring business based in Claremont, California that provides customizable educational plans, subject and test prep tutoring, and college application consulting. Citing information from an unreliable source makes academic audiences wary of your entire argument because it is based on information held to a lower level of integrity. Does the Author Have an Agenda? 2 Mar. A credibility checklist is a place to start, but it's engagement with the source that counts. How can I tell which sources are relevant to my research? Secondly, you should think about bias. However, if you are examining an historical event, you may want to find primary documents from the time of the event, thus requiring older sources. If you have never heard of the source, you probably should do some research to learn about it. Browse through the Table of Contents and the Index. A credible source is one that provides accurate and trustworthy information from experts in the field of study. One way to do this is to look at paratextual material, or the parts of a work other than the text itself. 2015. An example of a References section from a Wikipedia article that has been carefully sourced. While not all large organizations produce unbiased information, more well-known organizations will most likely provide more credible information. Are they an expert or are they less experienced with the topic? For a web source, the URL and layout should signify that it is trustworthy. If at all possible, look for that same information from a peer-reviewed source, rather than a professors personal .edu source. The sources you use are an important component of your research. Evaluating Primary Sources It is important to examine primary sources with a critical eye since they represent unfiltered records of the past. Similarly, YouTube videos can either be posted by a large organization or a single user. Being able to evaluate the credibility of information is an important skill used in school, work, and day-to-day life. Use it to try out great new products and services nationwide without paying full pricewine, food delivery, clothing and more. 2 Mar. Most clickbait articles want to shock the reader, so be aware of words like, Writing Letters of Recommendation for Students. Research 101: Credibility is contextual Students recognize that credibility may vary by context and information need. You can use the " CRAAP " test to help you evaluate the information sources you find. Once you have an idea of the types of sources you need for your research, you can spend time evaluating individual sources. However, unlike encyclopedias, Wikipedia pages can be edited by anyone, which means that sometimes the information stated is not reliable and is edited for the sake of making a joke (see example below). 3 Ways to Evaluate the Credibility of a Source - wikiHow Thinking Skills Critical Thinking How to Evaluate the Credibility of a Source Download Article methods Source Evaluation Help 1 Evaluating Sources for Academic Projects 2 Evaluating Sources for Everyday Life Other Sections Questions & Answers Video Related Articles References Article Summary Every source should contribute to the debate about its topic by taking a clear position. How do you know that your sources are of value? This test is used to evaluate sources of information and determine their credibility. Does the information come from an author or organization that has authority to speak on your topic? Whether or not your source is peer-reviewed, it is still a good idea to evaluate it based on these five factors. Where does the author work? What are the top three things that indicate that my source is credible? When doing research, you will use a variety of sources such as books, newspaper articles, magazines or journals, and websites. While almost anyone can produce a podcast, and topics range from discussing tv shows or books like The Bachelorand Harry Potter, other podcasts give in-depth information about science, history, anthropology, and a wide variety of other topics. Are your sources credible? Could the evidence be used to draw other conclusions? Communication & Mass Media Complete. How does the website look and feel? Social media is simply defined as any type of digital space that allows users to create content and share it with others in a social setting. % of people told us that this article helped them. Here are five ways to help you identify a reliable source: 1. If you cannot find that information corroborated in scholarly sources, thats a red flag that the information is not trustworthy, and you should not include it in your argument. When you are determining the credibility of the author of a book, you will first check the book in the following places: Author's note (if there is one), Foreword and/or Introduction (if there is one), and the About the Author (often found on the back cover). Common evaluation criteria include: purpose and intended audience, authority and credibility, accuracy and reliability, currency and timeliness, and objectivity or bias. A credible source should pass the CRAAP testand follow these guidelines: Peer review is a process of evaluating submissions to an academic journal. My source avoids vague or grandiose claims, and writing that is too emotive or subjective. They are not always reliable and may be written from a biased or uninformed perspective, but they can still be cited in some contexts. December 7, 2022. Thus, when examining sources for possible propaganda, be aware that sometimes groups may deploy pieces of true information in deceptive ways. To evaluate internet sources: In general, while you will probably not use a lot of social media in your research, if you do, try to locate the people or groups behind the usernames. This resource will teach your students how to locate reliable sources and how to evaluate websites for accuracy and credibility. Do you recognize the source? Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use. Try out the Dependability Checklist. This website collects and publishes the ideas of individuals who have contributed those ideas in their capacities as faculty-mentored student scholars. Note for Purdue Students: Schedule a consultation at the on-campus writing lab to get more in-depth writing help from one of our tutors. The information should be up-to-date and current. Rather than taking these figures at face value, you decide to determine the accuracy of the sources claims by cross-checking them with official statistics such as census reports and figures compiled by the Department of Homeland Securitys Office of Immigration Statistics. An opinion-based source is not necessarily unreliable, but its important to know whether the author recognizes that their opinion is not the only opinion. If you have doubts about an on-line source, you can discuss it with your instructor or TA and you can elect not to use it. The credibility of an author is very important in determining the quality of sources you have located and are thinking of using for your research project. What is his or her educational background? If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the Cite this Scribbr article button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator. Name recognition is often the first thing you consider to determine reliability. The information should be up to date and current. If your source does not contain any of these elements, consider reading the first few paragraphs of the source and determining whether it includes enough information on your topic for it to be relevant. There are many different types of sources, which can be divided into three categories: primary sources, secondary sources, and tertiary sources. Purdue OWL is a registered trademark. This is not necessarily bad, but it will depend on who published it, why it was published, and how you intend to use the material. There are several ways of determining if an author is credible depending on the type of source. As you navigate through different sources, you need to examine the authors and the websites other credentials before making assumptions simply by the domain extension. Anyone can write anything they want on the Internet. You may have to go back to the home page of the site to see credentials. However, some scholarly sources may be too dense for your particular research needs, so you may need to turn to sources with a more general audience in mind. As a small thank you, wed like to offer you a $30 gift card (valid at GoNift.com). By following these guidelines, you can produce a high-quality research paper that showcases your research skills and impresses your audience. This is not to say that less-established scholars work is not credible. My source is relevant to my research topic. Are they an innovator, or a follower and promoter of the status quo? Is the journal indexed in academic databases? Evaluating a source's credibility Evaluating the credibility of a source is an important way of sifting out misinformation and determining whether you should use it in your research. Are you directly analyzing the source itself (primary), or only using it for background information (secondary). Who are the intended readers and what is the publication's purpose? Always make sure to properly cite your sources to avoid plagiarism. For example, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals will provide only that information which supports their cause, whereas the U.S. Use information from a textbook only for the background information necessary to build the foundation for your more innovative argument. Web. There are a lot of sources out there, and it can be hard to tell whats credible and what isnt at first glance. Most clickbait articles want to shock the reader, so be aware of words like surprising, alarming, and shockingin titles. Revised on You need to make sure the source is accurate and credible. However, you might not want to quote a tweet by someone with an anonymous name and a Twitter handle such as @iluvscience321. To effectively evaluate online materials, you must be able to do proper speed reading and skimming of content, as well as citing references. An opinion gives the thoughts of a particular individual or group. Check for a list of references or other citations that look as if they will lead you to related material that would be good sources. PDF. The definition of a credible source can change depending on the discipline, but in general, for academic writing, a credible source is one that is unbiased and is backed up with evidence. You may have found good information, but your provider can tell you whether it's good for you. Objective language sticks to the facts, but emotional language relies on garnering an emotional response from the reader. This is a great place to kick off your research. You can also read abstracts, prefaces, introductions, and conclusions. Students understand the importance of critically assessing a source's credibility. Enjoy! Academic dishonesty can be intentional or unintentional, ranging from something as simple as claiming to have read something you didnt to copying your neighbors answers on an exam. What experience does the author have? Lateral reading is the act of evaluating the credibility of a source by comparing it to other sources. To help determine if you are looking at credible, quality information whether it be online or in a book or magazine, consider the "Five Ws" Who, What, When, Where and Why. The information should be up to date and current. Look for: Even sources whose conclusions you disagree with can be relevant, as they can strengthen your argument by offering alternative perspectives. Timeliness. Course ReservesLibrary materials reserved for your classes. The author and publication should be a trusted authority on the subject you are researching. Here is a list of potential credible sources list: 1. Always seek your second opinion ahead of the deadline for your project. Most sources will use a mix of primary and secondary sources to form an argument. Having information listed in more than one place increases its credibility. Last modified on Friday, August 12, 2008 Determining a websites credibility can be especially confusing for websites with a .org extension that appear to have a governmental or educational affiliation. letters, interviews). Both of these individuals have blue checks next to their Twitter handles, which means the accounts are verified. Teen Tech University. NOTE: If you are researching varied opinions and biases on a topic, then such sources would be appropriate. To determine if a source is primary or secondary, ask yourself: Some types of source are nearly always primary: works of art and literature, raw statistical data, official documents and records, and personal communications (e.g. Does the information come from an author or organization that has authority to speak on your topic? You should also examine whether the author has other publications and if they are with well-known publishers or organizations. Any resourceprint, human, or electronicused to support your research topic must be evaluated for its credibility and reliability. Preliminary evaluation helps you to pick out relevant sources in your search, while in-depth evaluation allows you to understand how theyre related. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. Don't dismiss it completely; Gregor Mendel's work was cited only three times, criticized, and ignored for 35 years before his discoveries in genetics were recognized in the field of science. The Big 5 Criteria can help you evaluate your sources for credibility: Currency: Check the publication date and determine whether it is sufficiently current for your topic. 2) Authority. How you evaluate the relevance of a source will depend on your topic, and on where you are in the research process. Is the language objective or emotional? Key points Sources come in many forms. Evaluate Sources With the Big 5 Criteria. By using our site, you agree to our. A panel of reviewers in the same subject area decide whether a submission should be accepted for publication based on a set of criteria. References Reliability can be estimated by comparing different versions of the same measurement. It is an important component of information literacy. 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